10 minute read
Water
Water solutions bringing positive change
DuPont Water Solutions Image Credit:
Water management and recycling is crucial to combating water scarcity issues affecting people across the African continent.
Semano Sekatle, DuPont Water Solutions regional commercial manager.
One in every three people in the African region are affected by water scarcity issues according to the World Health Organisation and this is getting worse due to rapid population growth, increasing urbanisation and growing household and industrial water usage.
The UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) six aims to ensure the availability and sustainable management of water sanitation for all which is not only a humanitarian pursuit but a profitable one as well – WHO has demonstrated that for every US$1 invested in water and sanitation, there is an economic return of between US$3 and US$34. African Review spoke to some of the technology developers and providers who have accepted this challenge and are working to provide industries and communities with the solutions to eradicate their issues around water scarcity.
Semano Sekatle, DuPont Water Solutions regional commercial manager, said, “With Covid-19 the issues around clean water were laid bare and now we are starting to see momentum regarding addressing water challenges. However, it is important to note that while the challenges are global, the solutions have to be local – you have to work with local communities and remember that water issues are very different depending on what region of the world you are operating in.
“Partners are also key. We are committed to bringing our global expertise to projects that help reach the Sustainable Development Goals. Everything we do should touch these goals where they are relevant to us. But getting there isn’t a journey we alone control, we need other people, and that’s where we look at SDG number 17, which concerns the value of establishing and forging new partnerships.
“This fresh perspective has enabled us to go and talk to different people. For example, we partnered with Water.org to increase global access to safe water; we worked with the Economist Intelligence Unit to produce the City Water Optimisation Index that looks at how cities are using their water and how they can optimise their usage; and we also work with government organisations such as US Aid and non-profit organisations such as W12 and Kusini Water NGO amongst others.”
Sekatle explained that while Covid19 had increased the focus on global water challenges, there was still an urgent need to minimise water impact and recycle more. To help meet these challenges, DuPont offers a wide range of solutions on both the industrial and municipal side which can take water and remove biological impurities for re-use.
The MEMCOR product line has been leading the low-pressure membrane industry for more than 30 years and its MBR technology advancements has substantially improved the reliability and economics of MBR systems.
“Of course, we have always had membrane technology to remove dissolved salts or what we call inorganic salts in water by osmosis, but now we have the ability to remove a whole scope of impurities from water and make sure it can be reused for drinking or irrigation,” Sekatle surmised.
“On the industrial side we have acquired a company called DesaliTec. In reverse osmosis (RO) systems, a certain percentage of water is rejected and is unusable but with Closed Circuit Reverse Osmosis (CCRO) we can reduce the amount of water rejected even in the harshest conditions.”
DuPont has provided its solutions to countries across Africa with notable projects in Ethiopia and Kenya where they deployed membrane technology to remove native fluoride content which can be very harmful to teeth. In South Africa, the company has recently conducted two projects for primary schools where water scarcity issues revolved around underground water contaminated by biological waste or passive mine drainage. DuPont’s technology allowed the communities to be self-reliant and self-sufficient and locals were trained in the process.
“Local presence always helps. We want to work with local companies and communities and have found ways to work with local manufacturers with which we partner to provide solutions. We provide training, resources and generally try to uplift local companies and economies.”
Turning to the future, Sekatle noted that DuPont has a keen focus on East Africa as it is home to some of the fastest growing economies. The company is also planning another social impact project in
Image Credit: DuPont Water Solutions
DuPont partnered with Kusini Water to help provide safe, pure water to Reneilwe Primary School in South Africa. The DesaliTec Closed Circuit Reverse Osmosis System.
Namibia where it intends to help people get access to clean water in this very dry region through the deployment of seawater desalination membrane technology.
“We are also always looking for new technology. There is a new innovation that we are looking at called B-Free which minimises chemical usage in membrane systems.”
The B-Free pre-treatment technology is designed to pre-treat seawater or brackish water influx to eliminate the detrimental effects of biofouling in RO systems. Keeping membranes free of biofouling ensures reliable RO systems with an optimised cost of water and sustainability footprint.
As Sekatle explained sustainability is at the heart of everything the company does and, outside of water, the company is also contributing to the SDGs by aiming to minimise their green house gas emissions significantly by 2030 and be carbon neutral 2050.”
Image Credit: Propelair
Propelair combines just 1.5 litres of water with a high-speed jet of air to leave the pan clean in one flush. Propelair
Through the deployment of its innovative toilet-flush technology, a new company has burst onto the African market in recent years –Propelair.
Propelair combines just 1.5 litres of water with a high-speed jet of air to leave the pan super-clean in one flush. The closed lid improves hygiene by reducing airborne germs such as Covid-19 by up to 95%.
The system has become commercially available in the UK in the last decade, during which time the original founder and inventor left the company. Since then a new management team has made the technology available internationally and has the potential to make a real impact in water-stricken regions due to its water-saving attributes.
CEO of Propelair, David Hollander, explained, “Our toilet can reduce water usage by 84% on average. The typical toilet uses 9 litres of water when flushed, but ours only uses 1.5 litres – which is great for the environment and for financial savings.”
In Johannesburg, Propelair installed its toilets in the Clearwater Mall and, since then, the centre has reduced its annual water consumption by almost 12 million litres, which has helped reduce its carbon footprint by almost 13,000 kg of CO2. Because of the cost saved on water usage, the toilets have paid for themselves in just 1.3 years.
The solution has also caught the eye of Siemens, which has made Propelair an integral part of its major water saving initiative launched in 2019. Siemens has a strong focus on sustainable development and net zero in South Africa and, with the help of Propelair, it is now saving just under 5.5 million litres of water a year.
The large South African bank Nedbank is saving 45 million litres of water a year thanks to Propelair. To help achieve its ambitious sustainability goals, the bank commissioned the roll-out of 32 units at its Clocktower Building in Cape Town in 2019, and 269 units for its headquarters. Since installing the units, the bank has reduced its water use by 75% .
Hollander explained that aside from water saving, the Propelair system also holds tremendous benefits in regards to hygiene – a pertinent issue since the outbreak of Covid-19. “Frankly, until they learned these germs could include the Covid virus, people have ignored the fact that germs in the air are created when a toilet is flushed with the lid up.”
So far, Propelair has released its product in South Africa and although there are plans to reach other water-stricken countries in Africa, Hollander explained that this would take time as they continue to prove the benefits of the technology for the continent. In addition, for the moment, the toilet is aimed towards commercial use as it needs to be flushed several times a day in order to be financially viable.
“However, by the end of 2022, we will have developed some exciting new products to build on what we are doing – the best example of that is IoT connectivity to provide managers with information on the use of the toilet and the water/money savings they are achieving in real-time. We also have some big ideas on how, in time, we could develop toilets for the domestic market, having utilised a grant from the prestigious Horizon 2020 fund.” ■
Image Credit: Propelair
David Hollander, CEO of Propelair.
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The next retail hub?
Africa is poised to become the fastest-growing and most sophisticated retail market in the wake of Covid-19, according to the 2021 Global Retail Development Index published by Kearney.
Thanks to the explosive growth of young, urban, and digitally savvy consumers; increasing mobile phone penetration; the creation of digital payment and shopping networks; favourable governmental regulations and spending initiatives; and significant investment by both foreign and domestic companies, the face of African retailing is set to be transformed the report stated.
As growth in Asia begins to slow down, Africa is emerging as the next big retail hotspot. By 2050 the global population is expected to increase by two billion, and Africa will be home to the majority of these new lives. The population of sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) alone is expected to double by 2050, with Nigeria expected to be the third-largest country in the world.
Based on an average annual growth rate from 2020–2025, United Nations Urban Agglomerations data projects that, with growth rates ranging from 5.14% to 6.46%, Africa will be home to 17 of the world’s 20 fastest-growing cities, four of them in Nigeria. It is also predicted that SSA will enjoy the highest rate of disposable income growth on Earth, about 9% CAGR.
Lucrative markets attract investment from inside and outside their borders. There are four classes of SSA retail – informal, traditional, modern, and illicit. Modern retailing – now dominated by regional players, primarily South African operators such as Shoprite, Mr Price, and Pick n Pay, and a few international players – is the least developed, providing rich investment opportunities.
In the face of increasing competition and margin pressures, Africa’s retailers are focusing on ROI; adopting franchising and other new business models; and rationalising store footprints.
Grocery retailing on the continent is witnessing rapid, scaled digitalisation driven by a vibrant technology and a start-up industry including thirdparty logistics firms and new payment options.
Today, e-commerce currently accounts for only about 1% of the total African retail market but it is expected to accelerate bolstered by rising smartphone/Internet penetration coupled with the world’s youngest population and an emerging urban middle class. South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya currently dominate the e-commerce landscape although the digital marketplaces in Ghana and Morocco are rapidly expanding.
Africa is also a hub of mobile money transactions accounting for about 50% of all global transactions. Retailers and central banks in various countries are working toward developing and facilitating digital ecosystems by reducing transaction costs on electronic payments, but gaps in e-payment infrastructure supply, logistical inefficiencies, and trust issues are slowing down both existing and future growth opportunities. security concerns, supply chain issues, lack of infrastructure, active conflicts, archaic governmental retail policies and practices, and isolation – are as real as the potential. At 18%, for example, SSA has the lowest rate of intra-regional trade on the planet.
Nevertheless, according to Kearney’s report, Africa’s aggregate potential as an emerging retail market far outweighs problems associated with investing. ■
